How to Take Full Page Screenshot? 6 Methods That Still Work in 2017

If you are looking for solutions to capture full webpage screenshots, this is the post for you.

I'm going to show you several quick ways to do this with step by step instructions.

The best part? I'll also show you the pros and cons of each method, so you save time figuring out which way to do it.

I've tried a handful of tools and techniques that claim to take a full page screenshot, but only a few still work as of today.

Please note: these how-to tutorials are for those of you who want to take a screenshot of an entire, long web page, one that isn’t totally visible on one screen. If you simply want to capture a static window, or a full desktop screen, this guide is not for you. You can use the built-in tools with your computer or mobile phones to get that done: Shift + Command + 4 on a Mac or Ctrl + PrtScn on a PC.

If this is not a one-time try, and you also have many other screen capture, recording and editing needs, I recommend the Snagit app.

1. Print and Save an Entire Webpage as a PDF

Suppose you want to extract, say, an Income Statement sheet from Yahoo Finance. First, open the page on a web browser. Here, I use Chrome on my Mac as an example.

Step 1: On the Chrome menu, click File > Print.

Step 2: Click the "Save" button to export the page into a PDF file.

Step 3: If you want to embed the financial sheet into a PowerPoint project, you may need to convert the PDF into an image in PNG or JPEG format first, then crop the image only to include the data part.

Pros:

It's quick.

There's no need to download any third-party software.

Screenshot quality is good.

Cons:

Extra time may be needed to convert the PDF file into an image.

It's difficult to directly customize the screenshots.

2. Use the Awesome Screenshot Plugin (for Chrome, Firefox, Safari)

Awesome Screenshot has a plugin that can capture all or part of any web page. Also, it allows you to edit the screenshots: You can comment, add annotations, blur sensitive information, etc. The plugin is compatible with major web browsers including Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.

I've tested the plugin on Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, and they all work well. To make things easier, I'll use Google Chrome as an example. The steps for using Awesome Screenshot for Firefox and Safari are quite similar.

Step 1: Open the above Chrome link and click "ADD TO CHROME."

Step 2: Hit "Add extension."

Step 3: Once the extension icon shows up on the Chrome bar, click on it and select the "Capture entire page" option.

Step 4: Within a few seconds, that web page scrolls down automatically. A new page will open up (see below), showing you the screenshot with an editing panel that allows you to crop, annotate, add visuals, etc. Click "Done" when you're finished.

Pros:

Cons:

The extension may encounter some operational issues, according to its developer. I haven't experienced any such issues yet.

3. Capture a Scrolling Window or an Entire Webpage with Snagit

I've been a fan of Snagit for quite a while. It's a powerful screen capture and editing app that allows you to do almost anything related to screenshotting. Together with Camtasia (a screen recording and video editing software), they both are great products from TechSmith.

Please note: Snagit is not freeware, but it does have a 15-day free trial.

To take a full screenshot of a web page, follow the steps below (I'll use Snagit for Windows as an example):

Step 1: Get﻿﻿ ﻿Snagit and install it on your PC or Mac. Open the main capture window. Under Image > Selection, make sure you choose "Scrolling Window." Hit the red Capture button to continue.

Step 2: Locate the web page you want to screenshot, then move the cursor to that area. Now Snagit will be activated, and you'll see three yellow arrow buttons moving. The bottom arrow represents "Capture Vertical Scrolling Area," the right arrow represents "Capture Horizontal Scrolling Area," and the bottom-right corner arrow represents "Capture Entire Scrolling Area." I clicked on the "Capture Vertical Scrolling Area" option.

Step 3: Now Snagit scrolls the page automatically and captures the off-screen parts. Soon, a Snagit Editor panel window will pop up with the screenshot it just took. See the available editing features listed there? That's why Snagit stands out of the crowd: You can make as many changes as you'd like, with tons of options.

Pros:

It's able to capture a scrolling webpage as well as a window.

Powerful image editing features.

Very intuitive and easy to use.

Cons:

It takes time to download and install the app (~90MB in size).

It's not free, though it comes with a 15-day trial.

Other Methods

During my exploration, I also found a few other working methods. I don't want to feature them above because they aren’t as good considering the time and effort you need to invest and the quality of output. Nonetheless, they do work, so feel free to give some of them a try.

4. Web-Capture.Net

It's an online full-length website screenshot service. You first open the website, copy the URL of a web page you want to screenshot, and paste it here (see below). You can also choose which file format to export. Press "Enter" on your keyboard to continue.

Be patient. It took me about two minutes before I saw the message, "Your link has been processed! You can download file or ZIP archive." Now you can download the screenshot.

Pros:

It works.

No need to install any software.

Cons:

Tons of ads on its website.

The screenshotting process is slow.

No image editing features.

5. Full Page Screen Capture (Chrome Extension)

Similar to Awesome Screenshot, Full Page Screen Capture is a Chrome plugin that is incredibly easy to use. Just install it (here's the link to its extension page) on your Chrome browser, locate the web page you want to capture and hit the extension icon. A screenshot is made almost instantly. However, I found it less appealing because it does not have the image editing features that Awesome Screenshot has.

6. Paparazzi (Mac Only)

Paparazzi! is a Mac utility designed and developed by Nate Weaver specifically for making screenshots of webpages. It's quite intuitive. Just copy and paste the webpage link, define the image size or delay time, and the app will return the result for you. Once that's done, click the download icon located on the bottom-right corner to export the screenshot.

The main concern I have is that the app was last updated on April 23, 2013, so I'm not sure if it will be compatible with future macOS versions.

Conclusion

These are six ways to take screenshots for a full or scrolling webpage. They all worked when I update this post. Like I said in the beginning, if you are looking for a one-time solution, I recommend the Print & Save technique, or the Awesome Screenshot plugin if you have some basic editing needs.

If you have long-run needs for screenshotting, I highly recommend Snagit as it's way more powerful and convenient. However, Snagit is not freeware, and you may need to spend some time getting yourself familiarized with the app.

I'll leave it to you to choose which one(s) to use. As always, if you've got any questions or suggestions, feel free to leave a comment below.

JP

I'm JP, the founder of this blog. I've been passionate about computer software ever since I had my first laptop in 2007. I currently use a Macbook Pro, a PC (HP Pavilion), an iPhone & iPad, and an Android phone. My goal is to provide you with useful software and how-to tips to solve tech related issues. Learn more about me.

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